Human Security Centre Human Rights and International Security Research

Despite being an important part of our societies with a great potential for fostering peace, youth voices often remain unheard, especially in multilateral settings. Peace and security issues were dealt with, thought through, and discussed only among senior experts until recently.

From a legal perspective, the fact that cyber-related activities can escape regulatory control, accountability mechanisms, and move across borders is a serious concern. Not only is it rarely possible to attribute responsibility to a cyber attacker and their agent/client, but the potential for human rights violations is even greater.

The title of this article may, at first glance, seem ironic or unrealistic. Indeed, imagining links between business, human rights and peace may be inconceivable for the obvious reason that the protection of human dignity and the maintenance and preservation of peace are generally the responsibility of states. However, the debate on the need for corporate responsibility to incorporate respecting human rights is not new.

The military-strategic superiority requirement is creating increasing pressure and plunging states into an AI arms race, as was the case for nuclear weapons in the 20th century. As the military use of AI has become the focus of great power competition, governments around the globe are increasingly investing in research projects to enhance their armed forces’ combat capabilities by providing them with brand-new technological equipment, including autonomous weapons systems.

While there are obvious reasons that cause cybersecurity problems in the healthcare industry to be particularly burdensome during a pandemic, organizations should realize the importance of cybersecurity and lead the charge from within.

To adapt our security response to hybrid wars and to ensure the safety of our citizens, it appears necessary for many strategists to unify civil and military counterinsurgency, to give a greater role to civilians in defense and security fields, to work in close collaboration with different sectors and combining capabilities, as well as to choose technologically driven solutions.

Private military and security companies have a strong technical and security culture. But they lack human and humanitarian indicators to rely on. This shortfall contributes to widening the gap between security and human rights considerations, and to increasing possible human rights violations.